Contents

History

Harold "Happy" Hogan is a long-time friend of entrepreneur Tony Stark. For many years Stark employed him as his personal bodyguard and chauffeur.[1]

With the suitcase armor

During the Monaco Grand Prix, Happy risked his life trying to get the Mark V suitcase armor to Tony Stark as Stark was being attacked by Ivan Vanko on the race course. He later accompanied Natasha Romanoff on her attempt to stop Vanko from his attack on the Stark Expo. Despite her demand that Happy remain a safe distance, he insisted on lending further aid and was able to battle one security guard to a standstill while Romanoff took care of the rest deeper in.[2]

Happy eventually became uncomfortable with his role as the "bodyguard of Tony Stark, the Iron Man," and was granted a new position as the head of security in the management complex of Stark Industries. It was in this capacity that he encountered Eric Savin, and Savin's boss Aldrich Killian when they visited Stark Industries. Immediately suspicious, he investigated them and later followed Savin to an exchange with another man. He tried to interfere and gather evidence when he noticed some of the man's flesh glowing in an amber hue, but Savin blocked him. Their altercation was interrupted when the other man exploded, killing several people and severely injuring Happy. Happy was able to point to a vital piece of evidence before he lapsed into unconsciousness, an act that gave Tony Stark a valuable clue into cause of the explosion.

In the hospital

Happy was put in a coma for some days, which prompted Stark to publicly threaten the Mandarin, responsible for the attack. Happy ultimately woke up, days after the explosion.[3]

Powers and Abilities

Abilities

Harold Hogan is experienced at boxing, and is also a very skilled driver.

Strength level

Harold Hogan possesses the strength of a man who engages in regular exercise while boxing.

Weaknesses

Obsessive pedantry.

Paraphernalia

Transportation

Stark's different cars

Notes

Jon Favreau portrays Happy Hogan in the films Iron Man and Iron Man 2, both of which he also directed. Although his appearance in the former was essentially just a cameo, his role was considerably expanded for the sequel and the third film Iron Man 3, which he didn't return to direct. Favreau once again reprised his role in the film Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Trivia

Happy's favorite television series is Downton Abbey, as he considers it "classy".[3]

According to Jon Favreau, the Downton Abbey scene shown at Happy Hogan's hospital room was carefully chosen.[4] Said scene features characters Tom Barrow and Sybil Crawley, a chauffeur and the woman of high society he longs for, which could symbolize that Happy secretly harbors feelings for Pepper. In the comics, Happy and Pepper had a romantic relationship, and ended up getting married.